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Copper naphthenate treatment for wood crossties and timbers
2014 - IRG/WP 14-30647
Copper naphthenate (CuN) has a long history in wood preservation and is recently finding increased usage as a treatment for wooden crossties and timbers. One of the principal reasons that CuN has gained market acceptance, in addition to its efficacy against decay fungi and wood-destroying insects, is its low mammalian toxicity and environmental impact. CuN is a well proven non-restricted use pres...
J Brient


Effect of polyurea coatings on performance of Douglas-fir in tropical above ground exposures
2014 - IRG/WP 14-40665
The potential for using polyurea barriers to limit fungal and termite attack was investigated on Douglas-fir lumber and timbers. Termites were capable of penetrating the barrier to attack non-treated wood as well as wood dip-treated with disodium octaborate. The coatings were also exposed above ground for 48 months in Hilo Hawaii. Samples were dissected to detect internal decay. Coated non-trea...
S Uysal, J J Morrell


Laboratory Study of Relative Leachability of Chromated Copper Arsenate Preservative from Treated Woods among Soil Types of Sarawak
2014 - IRG/WP 14-50307
Wood and soils are important natural resources from the environment and serves mankind well respectively as structural materials and natural platform erecting such materials. With shortfalls of naturally durable timber species for protected in-ground uses under Malaysian environments, Chromated Copper Arsenate (CCA) treated woods are widely used instead, incurring serious potential threats of pres...
A H H Wong, P K F Chong


Above ground field testing: results of experiments in Brazil after one year
2015 - IRG/WP 15-30660
After the development of new products they need to be field-tested to assess their efficacy under diverse conditions of climate, comparing them with a preservative with proven efficacy. In some testing sites, decay occurs very slowly. The solution would be to bring these tests to locations that are conducive to biodeterioration, like tropical climates. Tropical sites provide higher temperature and...
M F Natale, J M Vidal


Application of nanoparticles of silver and nanoparticles of titanium dioxide in reinforcement of wood and coating for wood in Costa Rica
2015 - IRG/WP 15-40698
Wood is one of the most widely used materials in last 20 years by society in many applications, with a considerable proportion of this material coming from forest plantations. Plantations usually produce timber with reduced strength properties and low natural durability. On the other hand, nanotechnology applications have the potential to increase wood properties. Likewise, nanotechnology cannot o...
A Berrocal Jiménez, R Moya Roque, A Lucrecia Rodríguez, J R Vega Baudrit


Shells of Coconut and their Durability against Termite Attack
2015 - IRG 15-10853
All tropical and subtropical areas of the Earth are inhabited by termites. In climates with moderate temperatures, they occur less frequently. Especially wood and non-wood materials that grows in tropical areas and used there in timber constructions and woodworking, wood durability and protection against termites should be researched. This paper reports findings from an experimental “AW011” la...
M Dass, A H H Wong, W Unger


Commercial Timbers of Kenya
2016 - IRG/WP 16-10876
The global timber trade has for years been too familiar with an assortment of available African timbers, reputed for their appearance in terms of colour, grain, pattern and durability. African forests are fast disappearing through over-exploitation as a result of demand for agricultural land. Kenya, the home of some of these valuable hardwoods, has been similarly affected, with its forest land cov...
R Venkatasamy


Performance of 3-iodo-2-propynyl butyl carbamate (IPBC) in L-joints under tropical conditions
2016 - IRG/WP 16-30688
The ability of 3-iodo-2-propynyl butyl carbamate (IPBC) to protect wood against fungal decay out of soil contact was evaluated using ponderosa pine L-joints at two exposure sites over a 12 year period. IPBC tended to provide better protection when formulated in an organic solvent and when applied using a double vacuum treatment. Performance also tended to be better when systems contained a water...
J J Morrell


A Case Study of Long-term CCA Preservative Leaching from Treated Hardwood Poles in a Humid Tropical Condition
2016 - IRG/WP 16-50324
Chromated copper arsenate (CCA)-treated Malaysian hardwoods have long been used as utility poles, posts, construction piles and motorway fencing in soil contact exposed to the threats of decay fungi and termites. Despite global concerns citing predominantly temperate conditions of long-term leaching of CCA toxic heavy metals from wood into surrounding soils and groundwater since the 1990’s, the ...
A H H Wong, W S M Chin


Durability Testing of a Cattail (Typha spp.) based Insulation Material against Termite Attack
2017 - IRG/WP 17-10879
The use of insulating materials is particularly important in the construction industries, especially with regard to the use of wood and naturally occurring substances. The use and durability of natural materials as insulating materials is of keen interest to many construction experts, and continues to be a topic of intense investigation. It is generally agreed that the use of natural substances ...
M Dass, W Unger, T L Woods


Assessing the natural durability for different tropical timber species using the mini-block test
2017 - IRG/WP 17-10886
The Xylarium in the Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA, Tervuren, Belgium) contains over 60,000 wood-samples, comprising over 12,000 species. These samples are of great historical and scientific value yet have a random format, which complicates standard testing. The wood-durability against Coniophora puteana and Trametes versicolor was tested for 36 species. Due to the random sample sizes the s...
V Deklerck, I De Windt, N Defoirdt, J Van den Bulcke, H Beeckman, E Espinoza, J Van Acker


Borate and Copper Naphthenate Dual Treatment of Bridge Timbers-Borate movement over time
2017 - IRG/WP 17-40795
Preservative treated wooden bridge ties in the South Eastern USA have a service life of about 15 to 20 years, which falls well below the average service life of 40 years of railroad cross ties (sleepers). It has been shown that cross tie life is significantly extended using borate dual treatment and this is now commercialized in bridge timbers using borate inserts. In previous research, it was dem...
J-W Kim, J D Lloyd


Dual Borate and Copper Naphthenate Treatment of Bridge Timbers:- Potential Performance Enhancements and Cost Savings
2017 - IRG/WP 17-40797
Dual treatment technology combining diffusible preservatives with oil borne preservatives, widely used for crossties in the USA, has now also been commercialized with bridge ties/timbers. In order to understand the implications of these changes, the historic service life of creosote treated bridge timbers in northern and southeastern USA were considered as well as field test data for both creosote...
J Lloyd, C Brischke, R Bennett, A Taylor


Evaluation of the Virulence of the Termite Species Occurring in the French Tropical Overseas Territories
2018 - IRG/WP 18-10913
The French tropical overseas territories are strongly affected by termites’ activity, which is especially devastating because the species encountered there are among the most virulent in the world. That is why in these regions it is particularly important that producers and users of wood-based products are provided with materials and preservative products whose durability and efficacy has been t...
M Kutnik, I Paulmier, J Vuillemin


Performance of untreated timbers in above ground decking tests: Preliminary results from an international collaborative trial
2019 - IRG/WP 19-10940
The ability to accurately predict wood decay risks under varying environmental conditions has long been of interest to timber users. Accurate predictions are difficult owing to the myriad of variables associated with the decay process including wood species, wood inhabiting organisms, timber building element design and environmental conditions. Despite these difficulties, decay predictions have be...
L P Francis, J Norton, E Melcher, A H H Wong, J Kok Lai, M Klamer, M J Konkler, J J. Morrell


Determining the natural durability on xylarium samples: mini-block test, wood powder and chemical profiling
2019 - IRG/WP 19-10944
Xylaria, or wood collections, can be considered sleeping beauties in terms of wood technological and biological output. In this study we focus on determining the natural durability of xylarium specimens from the Federal Xylarium in the Royal Museum for Central Africa. The Federal Xylarium contains over 80,000 specimens, covering more than 13,000 species, mainly from Central Africa. These specimens...
V Deklerck, L De Ligne, J Van den Bulcke, E Espinoza, H Beeckman, J Van Acker


Visual assessment of longitudinal wheel timbers and assessing the feasibility of extending wheel timber service life in the UK railway network
2019 - IRG/WP 19-20651
Timber has been a versatile building material for centuries and during the start of the Railway Age in the nineteenth century it was in considerable demand for use in the railway network, particularly bridge building. Timber is still in service and widely used throughout the UK railway network. The resilience and favourable strength to weight ratio and its relative ease of fabrication make it an...
J R Williams


Protecting Sustainable Wood Infrastructure ̶ Improving the Performance of Poles, Piles, Ties & Timbers with Dual Treatments
2019 - IRG/WP 19-30735
Wood is by far the best structural material in terms of environmental impact, as shown by a number of LCA studies. This environmental impact superiority can be improved if the longevity of the commodity is extended. The main durability concern in large cross-section treated materials is the susceptibility of the heartwood to decay, as it is not typically treatable using traditional methods. This ...
J Lloyd, A Taylor, C Brischke, N Irby, M Manning


Treatability of native and exotic alternative timber species
2019 - IRG/WP 19-40864
The service life of moderately durable species can be extended significantly if the challenge of effective treatment of refractory wood species can be overcome. Along with preservative effectiveness, the performance of preservative in treated wood depends on factors such as retention and penetration in treated wood, the wood anatomy, the uniformity of penetration and micro-distribution within the ...
D Page, T Singh


Durability of tropical species from Peru according to European Standards
2020 - IRG/WP 20-10964
Natural durability is defined as the intrinsic resistance of wood against the attack of destructive organisms. There are standardized methods to estimate a durability value. In Europe, the standard EN-350 is responsible for establishing the basic guidelines, as well as the necessary tests to determine this value, which is essential to know the degree of protection needed for the tested wood to ext...
J Valdivia, P Gómez, M T Troya, L Robertson, J A Martín, A Loayza


Longterm Performance of Treated Timbers in Marine Exposures
2020 - IRG/WP 20-10969
The performance of preservative-treated or modified woods in marine exposures was evaluated at test sites in Newport, Oregon, USA and Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. All samples have exhibited excellent performance at the Newport, Oregon site, while attack was more aggressive at the sub-tropical Brisbane site. Acetylated wood as well as samples treated with 7.3% chromated copper arsenate (CCA-T...
M Konkler, A R Zahora, J Norton, J J Morrell


Sterilization of Large Timbers during Preservative Treatment: How Quickly We Forget
2020 - IRG/WP 20-40902
Air seasoning is a common method of moisture management in utility poles and is done de facto during pole storage prior to treatment. However, extended air drying prior to treatment encourages fungal attack and can facilitate establishment of decay fungi in poles before a protective preservative barrier is applied. This problem can be mitigated by proper air-seasoning methods coupled with heat ste...
G Presley, J Cappellazzi, M Konkler, K Maguire, R Nelson, J J Morrell


Field tests of different tropical wood species in sea water
2022 - IRG/WP 22-30773
A number of tropical timbers have been tested according to EN 275 at Kristineberg Marine Research Station in Sweden since 1999. Most of these tests have started during the last 5-8 years. Wood species included have been Lophira alata (Azobé/Ekki), Minquartia guianensis (Manwood/Acaria), Chlorocardium rodiei (Greenheart), Cyclodiscus gabonensis (Okan/Denya), Shorea spp. (Bankirai), Dicorynia guia...
M Westin, P Larsson Brelid


Susceptibility of selected Australian commercial timbers to West Indian drywood termite Cryptotermes brevis
2023 - IRG/WP 23-11003
West Indian drywood termite (Cryptotermes brevis) is a globally distributed timber pest and is invasive in Queensland, Australia, causing widespread damage to structures and large economic impacts in control and repair costs. Despite this, the knowledge of which specific timbers are susceptible to attack is limited and requires investigation. Two six-week feeding trials were performed, exposing se...
W Haigh, R A Hayes, B Hassan


Unlocking the potential of tropical fast-growing hardwood species
2023 - IRG/WP 23-11010
Social forestry or community managed forestry practices have been promoted as an inclusive way to mitigate climate change through the framework of the UNFCCC scheme of the Reduce Emission Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+) programme. Fast growing wood species are one of the least tapped social forestry commodities in Southeast Asia, and they have the potential to be upscaled to meet the ...
S Fauziyyah, R Wimmer, C Brischke


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